Entire Thompson & Knight Team Joins DLA Piper for Valentine's Day Launch in Mexico City

The entire Mexico City office of Thompson & Knight has jumped ship to join DLA Piper, which opened a new office there today.

Two of the four partners making the move, Manuel Rajunov, a tax practitioner, and corporate partner Carlos Valencia, a telecom and technology specialist, will head the new DLA Piper office, reports Legal Week. They will be based in Dallas, but will focus their practices exclusively on Mexican law matters and are expected to spend a significant amount of time in Mexico City, the article says.

Corporate, government contractual and international tax matters will comprise much of the work being handled by the new DLA Piper office. However, the 4,200-attorney megafirm expects to expand its alternative dispute resolution, employment and energy practice there in the future.

Meanwhile, Thompson & Knight will continue to operate its almost 28-year-old office in Monterrey, another key Mexican city. It had opened the Mexico City office in 2006.

“The firm has a long-standing office in Monterrey and our strategy to expand to Mexico City was in line with the expected growth in the oil and gas industry,” an identified representative told the Lawyer. “This growth has not happened and while we regret the losses, we recognize that our focus on energy, especially in terms of our international presence, has not been recognized in Mexico City.”